


The Ice Dancers

by theartofnotwriting



Category: Figure Skating RPF, Olympics RPF
Genre: 2010 Winter Olympics, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-28
Updated: 2014-05-31
Packaged: 2018-01-26 22:39:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1705130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theartofnotwriting/pseuds/theartofnotwriting
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The ice dancers compete in Vancouver in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. <br/>"Were we so different? They're a young species. They have much to learn. But I've seen goodness in them."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meryl Davis

**Meryl Davis**

Italy was beautiful this time of year. She knew it was beautiful, not because she was there, but because she’d done her research. Yes, February in Italy was often when winter started to break, but there was just enough snow left for it to sparkle beautifully in the sun. Italy was definitely beautiful in February, but Canada, she guessed, would be a lot prettier, especially with the sunlight reflecting off of that medal around her neck.

Her neck hurt. She wasn’t sure if it was from straining to look out the window (pointlessly, because it was just clouds and air at this point) or from looking down at her book for extended periods of time. Either way, her neck hurt, and Charlie stole the most comfortable neck pillow she’d packed.

A few rows away she could see Tanith asleep with her head on Charlie’s shoulder. He’d fallen asleep too with his hand resting in her hair. It was too cute, really. She’d been angry with him at first (because how dare he put a relationship above their chances at an Olympic medal), but as time wore on, she forgot entirely why she hadn’t always wanted her two best friends to fall in love (which they were, clearly).

Jeremy and Mirai were sitting together too, a few rows back. She sat with Ben, who, unlike her, didn’t seem particularly thrilled with the loss of his partner and travel mate. She and Charlie tended to appreciate time apart as well as together, but Ben didn’t seem to feel the same about Tanith. She supposed he had a sort of ritual down, having already been to the Olympics in 2006, but still. Space was nice. Space was good. She looked over at him a few times, wanting to make conversation, but he seemed too moody to make any attempts worthwhile. Eventually he fell asleep, giving her some room to breathe.

Her copy of _Lord of the Rings_ was worn and dog-earred, and she was pretty sure there were several food stains on it (which was embarrassing on many levels), and was a present from the White family. They got her a new copy of one of her favorite books every year for her birthday, per Davis and White Tradition. This year it had been _A Song of Ice and Fire_ by George R. R. Martin, but it was an odd pre-competition ritual of hers to read her first Tolkien book on the flight to competitions, so she dealt with the old, tattered book she'd had since childhood. (And, if she was honest with herself, she kind of liked it. It felt like holding a piece of home.) Breaking that ritual probably wouldn’t impact their performance in any substantial way, but Meryl was not willing to risk it in the face of one of the biggest competitions of their lives.

 

_“I’m scared,” she told him when they were young enough to be travelling in the company of their mothers but old enough to be sitting alone together on the plane. It was late, or maybe it was early morning. She wasn’t entirely sure. Time seemed to stand still 10,000 feet above the ground. Time seemed to stand still with Charlie White._

_Jacqui’s head poked up from the seat behind them, and she tapped Meryl’s shoulder._

_“Do you know what day it is?”_

_She frowned and shook her head, her ponytail nearly whipping her partner’s face._

_His mother held up a small box with a bow on it. “Happy eleventh birthday, Meryl.”_

_She smiled and thanked her politely, shyly, and opened the box. It was a book._

_“It’s a little advanced reading for you,” she told her. “I know you love to practice reading, and I think you’ll love it. Give it a shot.”_

_Meryl smiled and thanked her again and, once Charlie had fallen asleep and their moms’ hushed whispers had all but died out, she opened the book and began to read._

__

_“When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton.”_

__

_And that was how her three travel companions found her when they awoke, curled in her seat, book propped open, half the pages read and conquered._

“ _Lord of the Rings_ again? Really, Meryl?”

She looked up, holding her place in the book with her thumb, and smiled.

"Can't compete without a little Gandalf wizardry and some ring magic, Charlie, you know that."

"Hey, nerds," Jeremy called up to them loudly. "Can you fangirl later please? Some of us are _trying_ to get some beauty sleep!"

"It wouldn't help you, bud," Charlie quipped, at the same time that Meryl pointed out, "You're watching a movie."

Tanith stirred slightly from her perch on Charlie's shoulder and moaned, "Shut up, all of you."

Charlie resumed patting her hair, and Meryl reopened her book. Jeremy turned up the volume on his movie, and she heard Optimus Prime belt out, "Were we so different? They're a young species. They have much to learn. But I've seen goodness in them," before Mirai smacked his arm and he turned it back down.

It was a long way to Vancouver.


	2. Tanith Belbin

**Tanith Belbin**

She felt guilty all of the time.

She felt guilty when he talked to her at the rink back home. She felt guilty when he planned elaborate date nights on Fridays after practices. She felt guilty when she asked Meryl what she'd done over the weekend and got an earful about books and laying in the sun and relaxing at her condo alone. She felt guilty when he sat with her on the plane.

Charlie White was a goddamn ray of sunshine, and she loved it. He was positive one hundred and ten percent of the time, and his bad moods were equivalent to everyone else's best. Sometimes she would lie awake at night with his arm wrapped around her and wonder how he did it (while simultaneously feeling guilty).

Meryl Davis was his everything, and she knew it. She knew it because Meryl was her best friend and Charlie was Charlie. She knew it because their laughs around each other were like no other. She knew it, and she loved him for it. She loved his love he reserved for his best friend since childhood, and she felt guilty all at once. Guilty for separating America's Dream Team. Guilty for separating Davis and White. Guilty for taking away their partner bonding movie nights. Guilty for being a traitor to her own partner. Guilty for leaving Meryl alone.

She knew Meryl didn't see it that way, and she probably didn't mind. And she knew if she ever told Charlie, he would repeatedly assure her she was wrong and probably kiss her until she almost believed him.

That was why she insisted they be rivals on Canadian soil. It would probably almost kill her, but it was necessary. Marina and Igor were expecting a medal from Canton's Dream Teams, and however much it pained her, her best shot was probably a bronze. So she let him go. Once the plane landed, it was all business. And it hurt just a little bit when Charlie and Meryl came back from sightseeing, clinging to each other in their laughter and holding various souvenirs. And it hurt just a little bit when they hung out in each other's rooms until the early morning hours, even though she trusted that boy with her life. And it hurt just a little when he caught her eye and looked away quickly, even though it was her idea. Ben seemed happier. They were back to their typical banter and easy conversations, working perfectly in sync, not tolerating any wasted time or disputes. Every practice was going well, which worried her slightly because she was waiting for the meltdown to happen, but she was pleased. They were especially proud of their original dance. They were in the last group for compulsories and the event didn't start until 7:45pm anyway. She was pacing (trying to keep her legs warm and not panicking, no, definitely not panicking). Meryl and Charlie were being Meryl and Charlie, defying explanation. They were sitting together, not speaking. She'd never understood how they could do that. She and Ben could understand each other without speaking to a certain degree, but they always had to talk things through before they competed. Always. She didn't make a habit of watching her competitiors, unless Charlie White was one of them. They skated well, she thought. Good enough to be in first for now. She wished she could tell him. She watched them get off the ice and he said, "It was good," for which she was glad. She was glad he knew. In the Kiss and Cry they laughed as their picture was taken and in the relief of the aftermath. They were smiling, but she could feel their nerves because she felt it too. Meryl never took her hand off his knee, and she was grateful for that too. Grateful his best friend could comfort him when she couldn't. His media-ready smile faltered for a minute in the suspense of hearing how they'd done, but was back in an instant at the announcement of 41.47, leaving them in first place for the time being. "It was good," he said. "It was good." They waved to the crowd happily, and he repeated, "Very good." "It felt great out there, I have to say," she heard before Ben pulled her away and she reminded herself to focus. Ben took her hand, and they started skating the pattern to warm up, and she got into character. "Fierce," she reminded herself, and almost laughed. She almost wanted it more for him than herself. Almost.


End file.
